Dealing with A Bad Or Fake Google Review - Part 3

Failing to remove a negative review can put your business name and reputation at serious risk. Bad or fake Google reviews can lead to negative publicity, loss of potential customers, decreased profits, and other consequences.

Wright Law has a successful track record of getting negative online reviews removed. It’s just a small part of what we do. But we’re seeing it as a growing problem. We hope this article will help you to know what works and what doesn’t.

By way of review, there are essentially four ways that a businesses can remove unwanted Google reviews. This focus of this article is method no. 3:

1. Ask the original author to remove the negative review,
2. Flag the negative review to Google,
3. Pursue legal action against the person who posted it, and
4. Use an online reputation management firm and SEO.

Method No. 3

Pursue Litigation

Convincing Google to remove reviews isn’t an easy task, and it’s not too uncommon for Google reviews to sometimes skirt Google Small Business’s review escalation process and remain online. Especially if the issue you are facing is one of defamation. Google doesn’t respond well to allegations of defamation to remove reviews. They don’t like to take sides in factual disputes. They also aren’t liable for defamation because of a law called the Communications Decency Act.

It’s also in Google’s interests that business patrons provide all types of feedback. Google also likes to have more reviews and information for people to find on its platform than less. So when it’s a close call or not clear who should win, they are usually going to defer to the poster and not take content down.

This is when it comes time to pursue legal action and get a [court order](https://www.minclaw.com/how-to-secure-effective-court-ordered-removal-online-content/) to get a review removed.

There are two primary situations where you will need to pursue a court order to have a review taken down:

1. When a reviewer’s identity is known
2. When the reviewer’s identity is unknown or anonymous (also referred to as a John Doe lawsuit

Pursuing litigation over a review is a serious decision that should only be sought as a last resort after you have exhausted other options.

When a Reviewer’s Identity is Known

Lawsuits can be highly effective tools to have negative reviews removed. They allow for a meaningful and fair adjudication of alleged legal violations, like defamation. Most of the time, legal disputes involving fake and defamatory reviews get resolved without ever having to go to trial. However, there are certain risks and issues involved with pursuing legal action that must be carefully weighed and considered.

When dealing with a known reviewer (defendant), there’s always a chance it’s going to be a contentious lawsuit, where defenses are asserted, the evidence is picked apart, and people’s principled stances on issues and disputes are tested. Filing an Internet defamation lawsuit requires both tact and strategy, so it’s critical to discuss the potential risks, expenses, actionable claims, defenses and privileges, and more (e.g., Where to file your Internet lawsuit](https://www.minclaw.com/where-file-online-defamation-lawsuit/) , what [damages and relief can be obtained](https://www.minclaw.com/prove-damages-defamation-lawsuit/?related_post_from=10012467) , etc…) with an experienced defamation lawyer before jumping in. [This is not something you should tackle on your own](https://www.minclaw.com/when-file-lawsuit-over-online-defamation-factors/) .

You might not even have an actionable claim. That’s why **it’s imperative to reach out to an experienced ** [Internet defamation attorney](https://www.minclaw.com/our-services/internet-defamation/) to advise you on the best course of action and respective costs and risks of seeking legal action.

When a Reviewer’s Identity is Unknown & They Are Anonymous

If you’re dealing with a fake or anonymous reviewer, then removing a review will likely be a more complicated process – requiring you to file a [John Doe lawsuit](https://www.minclaw.com/how-to-file-internet-defamation-lawsuit/) . A John Doe lawsuit is best practice when a poster’s identity is unknown and [ requires a plaintiff to adhere to specific filing criteria](https://www.minclaw.com/how-to-file-internet-defamation-lawsuit/) to subpoena Internet service companies and determine their identity.

For example, when reviewers and defendants are anonymous, plaintiffs will need to thoroughly consider the best place to file their lawsuit for purposes of discovery and relief. They’ll need to be able to provide sound reasoning for why a lawsuit is being initiated in X state.

A John Doe lawsuit is then followed by the registration or filing of your case in an out-of-state jurisdiction to subpoena respective webmasters, Internet service providers (ISPs), and site administrators for the anonymous reviewer’s IP addresses and account information.

These processes can become extremely complicated, and need to be done fast to preserve and obtain necessary evidence properly. I cannot stress this enough, but it’s incredibly important to work with an attorney who knows what they are doing and has experience with these types of procedures and protocols.

---

We Can Help You Remove Fake Google Reviews & Damaging Content

If you are in business long enough, you are likely to encounter fake online reviews. It is just the name of the game. How you respond to fake reviews and approach their removal is what will separate your business from competitors and enable your business to stand the test of time in your industry. 

While there are steps that you can take to protect your business against fake Google reviews, we do NOT recommend clients going at this alone. Reporting fake and negative online reviews to Google should be done with the assistance of experienced Internet attorneys who have proven success removing fake Google reviews and a comprehensive knowledge of Google’s content policies and guidelines.

At Wright Law, we understand the damage that a malicious, fake, or defamatory online reviews can do to your business. We know what it takes to not only remove fake online reviews, but put an end to the online attacks for good and help your business put its best digital footprint forward.